


Red Star

by Nicolle



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Charisk!, F/M, One shot!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-22
Updated: 2017-05-22
Packaged: 2018-11-03 17:46:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,875
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10972266
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nicolle/pseuds/Nicolle
Summary: In a world of sword and sorcery, a mysterious set of murders lead our heroes to seek the advice of a terrifying enemy. Can Chara and his friends stop the murderer before another victim loses their life?





	Red Star

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: Undertale belongs to Toby Fox. To make things easier on myself, and stay true to the essence of Gygax's D&D, I use Greyhawk gods in this fic. Greyhawk is, as far as I can tell, still copyright to TSR, but Wizards of the Coast, under Hasbro, currently controls the trademark. The story is copyright to me.

Asriel stood next to me in his purple, heir to the throne, formal vest over a gleaming, white button down, and black slacks, bouncing just a little nervously. I smiled and put an arm around his shoulders. It was fun to watch him be nervous for a friend, even if said friend had things completely under control. We stood with our siblings on the balcony reserved for the royal family during religious ceremonies at the Church of Pelor. As per usual for this sort of event all four of us boys were in our purple vests and all three of our sisters were in long purple and white gowns. While we all had my mother's pale skin, Asriel was the only one of us four boys to have inherited dad's pale blonde hair. The rest of us had mom's rich brown on our heads. 

Being a Dreemurr has it's benefits. You are of the royal blood. You have masses of wealth at your command. And you have all the leisure you could possibly want to pursue whatever you desire. The only thing you can't do is hide that you are a Dreemurr. We all have the same blood red eyes. But for today, hiding who we might be wasn't an issue. Asriel and I stood with the rest of our siblings at the Church of Pelor to watch a childhood friend make her final vows to the priesthood. 

Astelle, the oldest of my sisters, yanked on my sleeve, whispering as loudly as she dared, "Here she comes, Chara! Oh look at her!"

I smiled. Frisk looked lovely... well, she always looked lovely. But today, especially so. Even though she wore the same white and gold dress the other women being invested today wore, she wore it infinitely better. As if in the beginnings of the Church's history, the dress had been designed with her in mind. She'd longed for this moment from the time she was small and it was obvious that the Lord of Light answered her prayers. Her blue eyes flicked up at me on the balcony for a moment, and I gave her wink, causing her bright smile to widen as she stepped up to the high priest. After reciting her vows with great joy, the high priest raised his arms high over her head and gently laid the golden holy symbol of a cleric around her neck.

Her father, Sans Boneweaver, a tall man of red blond hair and a certain headache inducing humor, stood next to his wife Anna, the woman from whom Frisk received her blue eyes and chocolate brown hair, with a bemused and proudly defeated smile on his face. The Boneweavers watched from the balcony across from the one I stood on. He'd long opposed this, despite knowing that it was going to happen whether he liked it or not. I suppose it was hard for a necromancer to watch his baby girl become a cleric of a god of life and light.

Frisk was the last in line to make her vows, and for good reason. You could not stop the inevitable applause and cheers that swept through the crowd at her elevation from acolyte to cleric. You could only delay it. Happy tears flowed down her round cheeks as the high priest bent a little to place a kiss on the top of her head.

The reception in the ballroom attached to the Grand Opera House, paid for by the royal family at my parents insistence, was lavish to say the least. Not that it would have been any better if Asriel and I had been in charge of it. We were both prone to spoiling our long time friends on special occasions. It was a while before the line of well wishers filled with congratulations waned and Frisk had a moment on her own to breath. I was waiting for her on the patio abutting the royal gardens when she escaped the crush, leaning against the railing with my arms crossed over my chest.

She twirled for me, showing off her formal robes before taking my hands in hers. "What do you think?"

"It's nice, but I still think you'd look better in purple."

She pinched my arm. "Highness!"

I snorted, putting my arm around her waist. "Oh stop that. We're alone."

Frisk stepped closer, voice barely a whisper. "Are we, Chara?"

My other hand slid behind her, to cup the back of her head. "Yes." I pressed my lips to hers, feeling her melt against me, just as eager.

A not so polite cough sounded from the curtain, and I frowned deeply. If there was one thing you could count on, it was Sans Boneweaver being on hand to interrupt any moment Frisk and I might have together. As a point in my favor, Frisk never jumped away from me or looked the least bit embarrassed during these occasions. Any other woman would be highly embarrassed to be caught trysting by her father. But Frisk was determined to make a husband of me and, when Frisk was determined, there was nothing that could stop her.

Still, it wasn't a good idea to poke a necromancer too much. "Hello, Sans."

He stood with his hands on his hips. "*remove your hands from my daughter, your highness. she's not your wife yet. she's not even your betrothed."

I huffed. Screw it. I'm poking the necromancer. "Well she would be my betrothed if I had a moment of peace with her."

Frisk gave her father a patient smile. "You are adept at ruining our few moments of privacy, Father. Something, I should hope, you'd be over soon if you want grandchildren."

Sans smiled the way he always did, amused by how easily Frisk defeated him, and jerked a thumb at the curtain behind him. "*back inside, kiddos."

I rolled my eyes. "Don't you have a business trip you need to be off on?" 

The smile stayed in place but his eyes narrowed. Neat trick that. "*yes. and I'll be on it as soon as you two are inside."

I smiled. "Then I suppose we'll only need to wait until you're gone."

His smile fell and his expression turned black. "*don't push it, chara."

Oh. Skipping the title, huh? I suppose I've poked him enough. I really should stop doing so in general if I was going to call this man my father in law. I often wondered if he tolerated me because of Frisk or because I knew his secret, and by extension, Frisk's secret as well. A secret I'd put my life on the line multiple times to keep safe. It was likely a bit of both. I offered Frisk my arm and she took it, letting me escort her back into the party. 

She leaned into me a little. "Are you ever going to propose or am I going to have to propose to you?"

I smiled. "I guess that depends on whether or not you've bought me an engagement present. How do you know I even have one for you?" I teased.

Frisk pinched my arm. "Well, your siblings wouldn't give up what it might be, but Asriel let slip that such an item did exist."

I pouted. Leave it to Asriel to spill. My brother was awful at even the slightest of misdirection. I'd spoken to Sans and Anna about it a few months ago, and they hadn't let anything slip. Frisk went up on her toes and kissed my cheek, easily melting my annoyance. 

Sans gave my mother a bow and a smile as we passed her, the two exchanging their poor jokes with each other before Sans made his goodbyes. I'd often wondered how they knew each other. They weren't exactly from the same social circle. He kissed his beloved wife's cheek before heading out the door with a few of his men. My mother, now having the lady of the hour nearby, caught up Frisk's hands in hers. As the two made small talk, I noticed Martin Klech, MK for short, coming through the crowd in that way that made him look like the most incredible of incompetent klutzes. It'd be amusing to watch if I didn't know that his clownish act was literally a cover for exactly how graceful he really was. He caught up to me, almost landing flat on his face. I reached down to pull him off the floor and he handed me a file.

"There's been another one."

"Have the Captains of the Royal Guard and City Watch been informed?"

He nodded. "That's why I'm talking to you. This one was just as gruesome as the last four and came sooner than the one week interval. Papyrus thinks we maybe in a period of escalation. They'll both be here soon. Undyne said she wanted to try something."

Asriel was suddenly at my arm. "Another?"

I nodded. "Come on." We went out to the patio so that the crowd around us would not be able to see the file. Or hear our conversation. "Four deaths. Each person having their internal organs arranged in a pattern around the body." I looked at the drawings indicating the placement around the bodies. 

Frisk appeared at my side, moving the drawings around. I wonder how she managed to get away from my mother so quickly. "Though the organs are always laid in the same pattern, none of the bodies have been laid out the same way." She frowned. "I looked up holy days for all the religions I could and found no correlation between the dates of the deaths. It doesn't line up with celestial movements or moon phases either."

My brother ran a hand through his blond hair. "Then it's just a serial killer? No other motive?" He shook his head. "If that's the case, then figuring out who the next victim will be will allow us to catch the killer."

Captain Papyrus joined us. He looked much like his brother, Sans, red blond hair and bright green eyes, though he was much, much taller. "There is an issue with that. The victims have nothing in common. The killer was able to move through multiple levels of magical and non magical security to get to his victims."

Captain Undyne, hair so red it practically glowed, stood next to him. I always wondered if her hair was a gift from her human parent or simply a luminous quality gained from her merfolk parent. The blue tinge and scaling of her skin certainly was. "We tried raising the latest victim at the Church of Pelor. And nothing happened."

Frisk looked up at Undyne with her mouth hanging open. "What?!"

Undyne nodded. "The high priest attempted a full resurrection and we still didn't get a thing."

"That would mean their souls were being stolen away!" Frisk reached for the drawings again. "What if this is necromantic?"

We turned to rush after Sans only for Papyrus to stop us. "There's nothing for it. He will already be out of the city by now."

Asriel sighed. "Has anyone tried a simple speak with dead? Maybe the flesh will give up something the spirit can't." He looked to Frisk. "You up for it?"

She nodded. 

After making excuses to leave the party a little early, we piled into a carriage to head into the old city and the city watch precinct in that area. The body of the fifth victim, carefully laid out in the precinct morgue, was being inspected by Nacarat, a bard who's day job was with the undertaker's guild. Out of her flashy, overly revealing, red-orange bard's get up, and her brown hair pulled up, she looked positively normal. Or as normal as you can look in a dark, undertaker's suit with it's lace veil hanging long from the back of the top hat. 

She smiled when she saw us come in. "Hey guys!"

"Learn anything new?" I asked.

Nacarat shook her head. "Nothing. It's the same as the others. Kitchen knife taken from the victim's own cutlery. Victim is smothered to death before ritualistic evisceration. The body was placed in a particular way before the rigor mortis sets in so it holds that position until rigor mortis subsides."

"Frisk is going to attempt to speak with the dead."

"After the high priest failed a resurrection?" She sighed and looked to Frisk. "Good luck."

Frisk stepped up to the body. "Thanks." She looked down at the young man, frowning a little, eyes saddened a touch. She placed one hand on the body and the other over her holy symbol, eyes closing for a moment in prayer.

The lips of the corpse moved and Nacarat instantly dropped her ear to the man's lips, listening with all her might. After a few moments, she raised her head and looked at the rest of us. "Paint. Red star."

"What does that mean?" MK mused.

"It means we need more information and the person who is most likely to have it has left the city for the next two weeks at least." Asriel sighed and placed a hand on Frisk's shoulder. "Thank you."

She nodded and we headed back up the stairs out of the morgue.

MK turned walking backwards up the stairs easily. "Red star... Maybe it's a reference to a celestial event."

Frisk shook her head. "It doesn't match anything." She slowed to a stop on the stairs, staring at her feet. As soon as Papyrus and Undyne were at the top of the stairs and out of earshot, she whispered, "There is someone we could ask."

My jaw dropped and I immediately shook my head. "No. Not a chance."

Asriel backed me up. "I agree. We are not seeking out the Travesty Maker."

Frisk turned to him. "Can you think of anyone else who might know what's happening? That we can talk to before someone else dies?"

Asriel frowned and crossed his arms over his chest. "Not the point. I am not willing to take you anywhere near him and Chara even less so."

Frisk looked to Nacarat and MK. "And you two?"

Nacarat looked between Asriel and Frisk. "I'm not voicing an opinion either way. But if you do go looking for the lich, I will back you up. The Undertakers' Guild has a bone to pick with him about having used our morgues as hideouts and zombie factories in the past, and I don't mind causing him trouble."

MK nodded. "Ditto."

Asriel groaned. "How am I supposed to rule a kingdom one day if I can't get you to listen to me?" 

I patted his shoulder. "Considering an entire kingdom has a collective will much weaker than Frisk has by herself, you needn't worry." I turned to my love. "Are you sure?"

Frisk nodded, determined.

I sighed. "All right. Can you track him?"

A creepy tone flowed from her lips. "I always know where he is."

I grabbed her shoulders, shaking her a little. "You're thinking about it too hard. Snap out of it."

She blinked a few times before looking up at me. 

I sighed and leaned down to kiss her forehead. "I'll find a way to free you. I promise."

Frisk hugged me tightly while our companions stifled snorts and giggles. 

I glared at them. "Go ahead. Laugh it up. Might as well get our jollies out now. We're only going to see the world's most powerful lich."

"Speaking of getting out now..." MK trailed off, looking at Asriel.

Nacarat nodded. "Agreed. Sorry, Your Highness. I'm not letting the heir to the throne near the Travesty Maker."

"It is like wrapping you up and offering you as a gift," Frisk added.

Asriel nodded. "I'm not going to argue any of you on that. But you are taking one of my tokens so you can summon me to you just in case." He reached out and tapped my chest, just over where my heart locket was hidden under my clothing. "Good. You're wearing it."

"I only remove it to bath, Az." And he knew that. I wonder why he felt the need to check? Nervousness, I guess. It wasn't like any of us didn't carry one of his tokens at all times. I looked to Frisk. "Where are we heading? We'll need to go quickly before either of the Captains figure out where we've gone."

"The catacombs."

Of course we were going to the catacombs! Where else would an insanely powerful lich hide in the city he was so determined to destroy in order to make it the capitol of his land of undeath? "We all need to change into our gear. We'll meet in an hour at the entrance to the catacombs. MK, make sure you have the file with you. If this works, the lich will want to see it. Thankfully, we have daylight on our side so his minions will be less than functional."

We left the precinct, each heading for our particular homes. Knowing Asriel would be able to keep mom and dad and a large portion of the royal guard from noticing that I was prepping for 'unauthorized adventuring,' I wasn't too worried. I should have been. Astelle blocked the door, arms crossed over her chest, and wearing her purple and white armor that looked more like lace than protection. Plenty of people have found out the hard way that just how well it kept her safe as she pummeled them.

"Going somewhere? How long will you be gone this time?"

"I'm not leaving the city and, if things go well, I'll be back by dinner." 

She stood up straight, her overly long, blonde hair dripping down her back, and revealed that she was already armed with her favorite rapier. "I'll come along then."

I shrugged into my armored, long coat. "You won't be happy about where we're going."

"I am never happy about where we are going."

When we arrived at the entrance to the catacombs, we found Frisk already there in her cleric's armor, a light set made to let her move easily. She smiled when she saw Astelle, the two very quickly joining hands and putting their heads together. Nacarat, in her red orange jester's costume that revealed a bit too much, and MK with his gear and a broad smile, appeared soon after.

"So, what are we going into the catacombs for?" Astelle asked as we descended, Frisk and MK at the front of the group.

Frisk looked over her shoulder. "Oh come on. You know what we're doing."

"Of course I do. I figured as much when Chara was light on the details. I was just hoping against hope that we weren't walking into the arms of the realm's greatest enemy."

"No such luck," I muttered. 

The catacombs had existed since the earliest days of the city. When the first and only cemetery had become completely enclosed by people living around it, the residents had been exhumed under the watchful eyes of the Church of Pelor and reburied in the cavern just under the city. Bones had been arranged in what I suppose were decorative patterns around the caverns, indicating direction to and from the surface. Holding torches ahead of us to light the darkness, MK checked the route for traps as Frisk indicated which way to go. We eventually came to a wall of skulls and Frisk stood in front of it. 

"Behind here."

Nacarat and Astelle leaned up against the skulls, listening. 

"You hear that?"Astelle whispered.

Our bard, her red orange get up practically glowing in the dark, nodded. "Shamblers. There are zombies at least on the other side of this wall." She looked to MK. "Is there a way through?"

"Oh yeah. There's a hidden door just around the corridor. Is he right behind here?"

Frisk shook her head. "He's just a bit beyond that. Down."

"Everyone ready." I pulled my sword and looked to MK. "Open it up."

Astelle unsheathed her sword while Frisk stepped behind us. Nacarat hummed a little tune and my sword was quickly sheathed in fire. A door made of skulls swung open and the first zombie to come out was a big one, a barbarian in life if his girth was any indication. I stepped to the side and put my sword through it's meaty skull, burning through the brain with a clean stroke. He hit the floor of the catacombs, sending up a puff of dust, blocking my view of the shamblers behind him. I quickly jumped back, waiting for the dust to settle.

And was immediately glad that I had when the next thing to come at us was a trio of gray skinned ghouls with obscenely long tongues. Frisk's holy symbol was in her hand and a flash of light turned the three to ash before they'd even managed to leap the corpse at our feet. Astelle and Nacarat dashed forward, both destroying the remaining two zombies in the hall beyond the doorway. After moving the remains of the barbarian, we stepped into the hall. MK resumed looking for traps as the hall turned into a stairway leading into gloomy darkness. At the bottom of the stairs was a door. 

MK looked back at Frisk. "This it?" 

She nodded.

Astelle, ever the one for action, kicked the door open. 

An annoyed snort sounded from the glowing laboratory beyond. "Why don't you just let yourselves in?" 

The lich, Gaster the Travesty Maker, looked up from his massive wooden desk, ink pen held delicately in one skeletal hand. His empty eye sockets glowed with little green pin pricks of pure annoyance. He lifted the other hand to cast a spell and Frisk immediately put herself between him and the rest of us, arms out. While the expression on his skull never changed, you could hear the frown in his humph. His dark green robes fluttered about his boney legs as he stood.

"Well, dear child. To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?"

Frisk looked back at the rest of us for a moment before turning back to the lich. "We're investigating a series of unusual deaths and none of the clues add up."

"And your father cannot answer your questions? I refuse to believe that my best pupil could not help you."

Frisk frowned deeply. "You know he isn't in the city right now."

A satisfied hum erupted from the lich and his eyes blazed. "Indeed." He gestured toward the desk. "Show me."

Frisk held out her hand and MK handed her the file. Treading carefully, she gently laid it on the desk. "Four persons were smothered to death before being disemboweled. Raise dead and resurrection is useless in bringing them back. Using speak with dead only got us the words 'paint' and 'red star.' The victims do not have anything that would link them, so we aren't sure how the serial killer is choosing their victims."

Gaster swept his robes back a little before sitting down and opening the file. He held up one of the sketches. "Does this indicate the position of the body when found?"

"Yes."

"Good. Because the internal organ placement is rubbish and doesn't mean a thing. It's a ruse to make you think you are looking for one kind of murderer when you need to be looking for something else." He tapped one of the sketches. "The position of the bodies? That is significant. Someone has been summoning a devil."

"So we're looking for a cultist?" Nacarat asked.

Those green lights flicked to her for a moment before looking down at the file again. "No. There aren't any religious holidays or celestial actions to line up with the reported death dates. Someone is summoning for their own personal gain. If all the dead can say is 'paint' and 'red star' you should look for someone who has a connection to both of those things." He closed the file and handed it back to Frisk. "And now to the matter of what I am owed for the assistance."

The lich stood, robes fluttering around him, and my sword was in my hand without my thinking about drawing it. My sister and friends stood just as ready. Gaster merely waved us off with one skeletal hand.

"Oh please. None of you are ready to face me."

On that point, I had to concede. Sans, Papyrus, Undyne, and many of their friends, could tangle with him. We really only had Frisk as our trump card. "What do you want?" 

He waved me off again. "Nothing you can supply, son of Dreemurr." He reached out, skeletal fingers brushing against Frisk's cheek and sliding back into her hair. Astelle and MK both grabbed hold of me to keep me from rushing at him. 

Frisk shivered as the lich pulled her against his chest, whispering something over her head. For a moment, Frisk's eyes glowed the same green as the flickers in the sockets above her, black lines appearing on her face in mimicry of the cracks in the lich's skull. The lines disappeared and green faded, leaving Frisk deeply tired. She pushed away from him, and stumbled, holding onto the desk to remain upright. She glowered up at him. "What did you do?"

"I made contact with my soul, which, of course draws power directly through yours. It's a rather refreshing process for me, though I'm sure very tiring for you."

She drew a deep breath and stood straight, even as she trembled. "I will make you regret what you did to my father."

Gaster chuckled darkly. "While I am absolutely sure you will make me regret making you my living phylactery, making me regret the pain I've inflicted on Sans in doing so? I doubt that very much." We waved us out of the room. "Begone. I need to move my laboratory somewhere much more secure."

I pulled away from Astelle and MK, sheathing my sword as I did so. Putting my arms around Frisk, I helped her walk back to the door and half carried her up the stairs. As soon as we were back in the gloom of the catacombs, Astelle and Nacarat pulled Frisk away from me to look her over. 

Astelle held Frisk's face in her hands. "Are you okay?" 

Frisk nodded. "Just tired."

Nacarat looked over the rest of her. "It doesn't look like he harmed you, but he did leave some magic on you. It looks like a protection against evil."

MK frowned. "Why would he do that? Wouldn't it keep him away from her?"

A thoughtful look came over our barely dressed bard's countenance. "It would also protect her against devils. So paint and red star are our only clues. Let's try looking for a painter who is associated in some way with a red star." 

We trudged out of the catacombs to find the sun beginning to dip low on the horizon. 

I sighed. "We'll meet tomorrow outside Muffet's Cafe after breakfast."

Nacarat gently petted Frisk's head. "A good idea. I'm not sure Frisk can keep her feet for much longer anyway." She bounced away, disappearing down an alley. 

MK followed after her with a wave. "I'll see you guys later. I need to leave a report with Captain Papyrus."

I put an arm around Frisk. "Do you think I could steal you away for dinner this evening?"

Frisk smiled and nodded, letting me lead her off, Astelle following us with an amused smile. 

The long, summer evening found us on the patio off the main dining room of the castle, watching the sun set on the city. Frisk leaned back against my chest, her head resting on my shoulder while my fingers trailed up and down her bare arm. Her eyes turned up toward mine, and I brought my hand up, gently running my fingers along her cheek and down her neck. Craning her neck a bit, she kissed the edge of my jaw. 

As Frisk and I weren't formally engaged yet, Asriel was acting as our chaperone. But I knew he wouldn't stop us from having a little moment. He likely wouldn't even look up from the book he was so deeply engrossed in. I pulled Frisk up a little further in my lap, rubbing my nose against hers before kissing her, letting my lips find hers and her tongue find mine. She sighed against me, putting a hand on my chest. I took that hand in mine, resting my forehead against hers. Frisk smiled, and I held her there, content.

Astelle rushed out onto the patio causing Asriel to startle. "There's been another murder!"

MK followed her. "But this time we have more clues."

Frisk stood, moved a little too quickly, and fell back into my lap, groaning a little. I gently petted her hair, knowing that any attempt to convince her to stay behind and rest would be met with ferocity. I stood with her this time and she kept her feet. 

Racing into the city proper, we met with Undyne and Papyrus outside an apartment building in the students' area around the university. The building, a five story tall building of red and beige brick, was roped off. Many anxious residents waited outside while the city watch investigated the interior. An audible murmur went through the crowd at the sight of Asriel, and, long used to such things, we ignored it. The guards placed at the entrance let us in with customary bows.

Undyne looked over her shoulder at us. "Hey, punks. This time, we've got something useful."

Papyrus turned to us, offering his niece a smile. "We have a witness and the murderer, in their haste, left something behind."

"Did they leave behind a jar of paint?" Frisk asked.

"An empty jar, but one that is reserved for paint."

I looked around. "Where's the witness?" 

Undyne motioned for us to follow her. "This way. The victim is a university student by the name of Jennifer Brines."

We walked into what I assumed was the bedroom of victim. Jennifer's body, partially stripped by her killer, was under careful examined and details recorded. She hadn't been disemboweled, meaning that even a few minutes sooner and she might have lived. I looked away so as to give her some dignity in death. The gods know her body will suffer worse for the investigation before resting in the catacombs under the city. 

Undyne led us into the next room where a young, rather nondescript man with dark hair sat on a bed, trembling nervously. He had a handkerchief in his hand and he wiped at his eyes and nose almost constantly. He immediately stood and bowed at the waist when he saw Asriel. And immediately sat down again when Papyrus motioned for him to sit. 

"Tell us what happened," Asriel commanded.

His eyes darted around the room nervously, not really looking at anyone. "I'd just come home from classes when I found someone dressed in black from head to toe smothering my sister. He, uh... he shoved me and ran out the door. As I was trying to wake Jenny up, one of her friends came by, and I told her to call a doctor and get the watch." He sniffed loudly and wiped at his face.

"Your name?"

"Jeremy... Jeremy Brines."

"We are sorry for your loss. Thank you for your help."

"You're going to catch the man who did this, right?"

Asriel nodded and Brines nodded in time with him. And kept nodding a little too quickly before wiping at his face again. 

My brother looked to Undyne. "Did you get a statement on height and weight of the murderer?"

Undyne nodded. "Yeah. Unless you have anymore questions, I'm walking the kid here home to his parents' place for the night."

Asriel frowned, mulling over something in his head before nodding and turning to leave. We followed him through the victim's room to stop in the apartment's modest kitchen. "Well, at least we know paint is involved in some way with the jar."

"Really?" I asked, watching as Undyne walked out of the apartment with Brines. "How do we know the victim wasn't an artist?"

MK shook his head. "There's nothing else here to indicate that. If Jennifer Brines was an artist, then she kept her supplies somewhere other than home. And while a lot of people in the students' area rent studio space from the art lofts, they still keep something on them like a sketchbook at least. We've located her textbooks, notebooks, school uniform, and knitting. That's it."

Astelle leaned back against the near wall, hand covering her mouth in thought. "What use would paint from a devil get you? What kind of paint is worth a human soul?"

MK shrugged. "Really good paint? I have no idea. Frisk?"

Frisk shook her head. "I've got nothing. And I doubt checking the art lofts will help. Anyone willing to kill for paint isn't going to paint in public."

Asriel motioned for us to follow him out the door. "Perhaps we should wait until we find out more from examining the body."

I moved to follow him and stopped dead in my tracks. Jennifer Brines had only just been smothered before the ritual was interrupted. "She can be raised! The murderer was interrupted! Her soul wouldn't be gone just yet! We can raise her from the dead!"

Everyone stared at me for a moment before Frisk grabbed Astelle's hand and practically dragged her out the door. "We'll get a more powerful cleric! You guys wait here!"

Asriel and I rushed back into the room to find Papyrus taking the last of his notes as two members of the watch moved to lift the woman's body.

I waved off the watchmen. "Wait! We're going to have her raised."

Papyrus looked up. "It didn't work before."

Mk pointed to the body. "Before the murderer had all the time in the world to complete the devil summoning. This time, he was interrupted so no devil means..."

"The soul is still available for resurrection." Papyrus smiled. He motioned to the watchmen. "Leave her here. We'll try this first." 

I reached out and pulled one of the bed sheets over her. If this worked, I'd rather that she not wake up knowing exactly how many people had seen her in such a state of undress. Frisk and Astelle returned with Mother Willa, the cleric under whose tutelage Frisk had spent her youngest years as a simple altar server. Mother Willa smiled when she saw Asriel and I, giving a quick head bob in deference before turning to the woman on the bed. She lifted her holy symbol high while placing her other hand over her heart. 

A warm golden glow washed over the woman on the bed. Jennifer Brines' pale skin flushed and she gasped, sucking in a deep breath. As her breathing normalized, Frisk picked up with a healing spell, returning the woman to full health. Jennifer's eyes opened and she sat up slowly, holding the sheet to her chest. She blinked a few times as she looked around.

"What happened? I..." She looked to Mother Willa and Frisk, eyes focusing on the clerics. "That drink? Was it poisoned? What did he do to me?!"

Asriel knelt a little next to the bed. "Your brother walked in on your death."

Jennifer shook her head. "I don't have a brother."

We stared at the newly resurrected woman for a moment in shear disbelief. 

Frisk looked to me and then back to Jennifer. "Then who is Jeremy Brines?"

"I don't know a Jeremy Brines. I know a Jeremy Ironhead. He and I are in the same toxicology classes at the uni. He came home with me for our weekly study session."

"And he gave you something to drink?" Frisk followed up.

Jennifer nodded. "I felt really sleepy after drinking it." She looked to Frisk. "Was I dead?"

Frisk nodded. 

Jennifer stared at her hands for a moment. "Why? Why would he do that? I've known him forever. He's always been a good friend... I thought that... maybe..." She let out a half choked sob and covered her face with her hands. Frisk put her arms around Jennifer, holding the woman while she cried. When the tears subsided, she sniffed a few times, staring at her hands. "I don't have the means to repay a resurrection."

I shook my head. "It's on me. Has Ironhead ever mentioned anything to you about paint or paintings?"

She nodded. "He's been talking about this girl in class. Someone in the school of art. I went to see the girl's paintings and they weren't anything special. They're all this same monotone red." She sniffed. "Maybe he just thought she was special."

"Does this woman have a name?"

"Lilmur. I don't remember a last name."

Asriel and I looked at each other. We finally had something.

Papyrus tapped his chin for a moment deep in thought. "If I may, Miss Brines, would you be willing to be of assistance to me?"

She nodded.

"Ah. Good. It would be best if your assailant, and the recipient of his ardor, do not know you are alive. I will have the undertaker remove you from the premises. You will be taken to the district watch offices and your parents will be brought there to know that you are well."

Jennifer nodded and looked to me and then blinked, recognition registering before she looked to Asriel and Astelle. "Oh my god... Your Highnesses!" She bent over in half on the bed in a makeshift bow. "I am so sorry! I..."

Asriel waved her off. "It's all right. You've provided us with key information for stopping a terrible crime. Please continue to be of service to Captain Papyrus."

She nodded quickly before sniffing again. I pulled out my handkerchief and handed it to her before leaving the room. She accepted it gratefully, dabbing at her eyes while Papyrus gave her instructions. We followed Asriel out of the apartment building and ran directly into Nacarat in her undertaker's suit and top hat.

"Is this one as bad as the others?"

I leaned in, whispering into her ear. "We've managed to save this one and now we have a few more answers. Keep acting like you are here to remove the dead and follow Papyrus' instructions. He'll fill you in on what we've learned."

"Where do I meet you guys afterward?"

I looked to the sky and the purple wash with the first twinkles of starlight. "Just as earlier, Muffet's tomorrow morning."

Nacarat nodded and entered the apartment building.

Frisk suddenly grabbed my arm. "Ironhead left with Undyne. I doubt she's in danger, but I'd rather check to be sure. If he missed one kill, he'll make another. And we need him in custody."

Asriel frowned and stopped next to the nearest watchman. "Do you know where Captain Undyne went with the man she was escorting?"

"The young man gave his address as 423 Penny Lane."

"Thank you." 

MK rushed ahead of us. "That's not far from here. Come on!" We ran after him as he ducked and weaved through the thickening university crowds out for a late evening's meal and drinks. We ducked into an alley and emerged on the other side to find Penny Lane, a very quiet area filled with the small houses university faculty and staff often lived in. A scream cut through the air and we raced in it's direction. Right up to the door step of house number 423.

Before Astelle could open the door, it swung open and in front of us stood a familiar elven ranger in a familiar green striped scarf, dragging a hog tied Jeremy Ironhead behind her. Well, I was wondering when Zapia Saguaren would show up. The mousy little elf had never turned her nose up at one of our adventures. Undyne stood behind her, looking a little woozy, but shaking it off.

"Are you all right, Undyne?" Frisk called.

The Captain of the Royal Guard nodded. "The ass put something in the drink he offered me. Thankfully, Zapia happened to be in the neighborhood."

The elf shrugged. "Well, I do have family just down the way." She tugged on the ropes holding the unconscious man behind her. "So, what do we do with this?" 

"Take him to the precinct," Undyne muttered, shaking her head to clear it.

"Do I get a fill in on what's going on?" Zapia asked. She dragged Ironhead along the dusty road behind her until I reached over and hefted him up, carrying him over my shoulder.

"He's been killing people to summon a devil to get some sort of special paint for a female artist at the uni," MK answered.

Zapia looked at me. "Special paint? For paintings specifically?"

"We think so." Frisk frowned a little. "Why?"

"Because tomorrow is a huge outdoor exhibition by the student artists in the school of art. All the student paintings will be arranged in a huge circle around the uni's main lawn. Two of my mother's paintings will be at the exhibition."

"Congratulations to your mother," Asriel offered. 

"Thank you."

"When will the paintings be set up?"

"Tomorrow morning."

I looked down at Frisk and noticed that her eye lids were drooping as we walked. "MK, see if you can locate the artist Lilmur tonight. If you can, come get me. If not, we'll call it a night and search for the painter and her paintings in the morning." 

We got to the precinct and I dumped the man onto the tiled floor of the intake lobby. Putting an arm around Frisk, I led her back out under an inky blue sky rapidly turning dark. 

"Shall I walk you home? Your mother is probably wondering where you are."

Frisk smiled sleepily. "She knew where I was going when I left the house ready for a fight."

I groaned. "She's going to tell your father when he gets home and then he's going to kill me."

"Hardly." Frisk turned so that she was pressed against my chest. "We're alone, Chara."

My nose came down to touch hers. "Are we?"

She went up on her toes, lips upturned. "Yes." She kissed me quick as a snake only to sigh when my sister coughed to get our attention.

I looked at at Astelle and caught sight of Frisk's bemused uncle. I sighed and stepped back.

Papyrus wagged a finger at us. "You two are not betrothed yet. A carriage is coming around to take Your Highness back to the castle. Frisk will be coming home with me."

As if on cue, a royal carriage came around the corner and stopped in front of the precinct.

I sighed and lifted Frisk's hand to my lips for a brief kiss. "Until tomorrow."

"Good night, Your Highness."

I woke a little later than I would have liked the next morning. Laying in bed, I stared up at the tapestry of several monsters running after a laughing child I'd hung in the canopy of my bed. I wasn't sure where I'd bought it. I just remember thinking that I liked it enough to buy it on the spot which was odd for me since I wasn't one to just drop money impulsively. Yarn for knitting did not count. The monsters were not threatening to the child, but rather, joyously following the little one in their striped sweater. The ghost of another child holding a small, yellow flower smiled as it floated along. I wasn't sure why I liked it so much. 

Dressing quickly, I made for the main entrance and checked myself immediately, staying on the second floor. Going around the corner, I scooted behind a curtain to remain concealed while I looked down into the gallery over the main entrance. My suspicion paid off. My mother, looking rather put out, was at the door with Asriel and Astelle, both looking rather annoyed. I paused for a moment and considered what to do. I could go down and face her wrath at yet again endangering myself. As if I wouldn't be in danger all the time when Undyne retired and I took her place as Captain of the Royal Guard. Or I could slip out the side door and head into town, delaying my mother's fury for a bit, but also having Asriel and Astelle angry at me for having dodged. 

Well, if I it was a choice between a needling now or a disemboweling later, I'll take the needle. I headed down and into the gallery, giving mom my best smile. "Greetings, Mother. What has you about this fine day?"

"It's about time you came down. I was beginning to worry. I hear from your siblings that you are attending the university's outdoor art exhibition and I have decided to join you. Have you had any breakfast?"

Wait. What? I looked to Asriel and only got a glare. Oh. I'd taken so long to get up that Azzy, in waiting for me, had to come up with something on the spot to explain why he and Astelle were going out. And I love my brother, but he isn't all that great with coming up with any excuses on the fly, let alone a good one. And our mother would be very annoyed at having missed out on the exhibition. Well, today was going to be interesting to say the least. I offered my queenly mother my arm and off we went with a few members of the guard behind us. The stop at Muffet's Cafe was a relief to say the least. I was hungry and my mother was very fond of our friends, Frisk especially. 

Our mother engrossed with one of Zapia's stories of elven life, Astelle pinched my arm hard. "You never sleep in!" she hissed. 

I resisted the urge to groan and glared at her. "I just woke up late. It wasn't like I was trying to get mom involved."

"Well now we have to worry about her as well as all the people attending the exhibition." Astelle sighed. "Hopefully the paintings will just be paintings."

"That's right," I muttered. "Go on and jynx it."

The black frown she gave me was worth its weight in platinum. At least Asriel wasn't laying into me. Well, at least he wasn't right now. Depending on how things go today, he might let me have it later. And I'll tell him that he could, you know, learn to come up with plausible reasons for doing whatever he's doing. If he's going to be a king, he needs to learn to lie. Or at least be able to misdirect effectively.

After breakfast, we headed for the university's main lawn. The lawn was exactly that, a well manicured plain of grass. It was also the second biggest piece of green space in the city after the royal gardens. The paintings on exhibition made a perfect circle on the lawn and mom was interested in several as she walked along, the artists standing with their work plainly excited to have the attention of Queen Toriel. Astelle stayed with her, allowing the rest of us to get a good look at the rest of the paintings. 

It wasn't hard to pick out the five, monochromatic, red paintings, each set an equal distance from each other in the circle. Which was strange because all the other artists had their paintings grouped together. Jennifer Brines was right though. They weren't anything particularly special. Dark red trees that appeared to be dripping on a lighter red background on one, overlapping blocks of red on another, and one that was little more than red paint splashes. While no work of art will ever be worth the life of another, the artist didn't even seem to be trying to make good on the deaths necessary for the paint. The artist wasn't standing with any of her paintings either.

I grabbed MK. "Do we have a description of Lilmur? Or more than just a first name to go on?"

MK nodded. "Lilmur is unique enough that there was only one listed at the university. Lilmur Bryant is a woman with dark brown hair with red dyed tips of vaguely elven descent with somewhat pointed ears. Always wears a red scarf around her neck."

I looked around and spotted a couple red scarves, but none on a person of elven descent. I frowned. Had the artist been tipped off by Ironhead not showing last night and run for it?

A member of the city watch rushed through the crowd, eyes darting around. Upon seeing Asriel, she headed for him, and I made my way over as the rest of our merry band converged. We made ring around the watchwoman so as to keep the crowd from hearing what was for our ears only.

"There was another murder this morning, but it lacked the disemboweling."

Asriel frowned. "How do you now it's connected then?" 

"Because the body was found in Lilmur Bryant's studio and another painting was obviously made after the death."

"But there are only five paintings here..." 

I trailed off, eyes caught by a woman with red tipped, brown hair, gently pointed ears, and a red scarf around her neck, walked past us with a red painting much like the other five, still wet and dripping paint on the grass. She walked into the middle of the large circle of paintings, placing the last one on the ground. She lifted her arms and began to chant. 

My mother, just to our right, snarled before cupping her hands over her mouth. "Everyone! Out of the circle of paintings as quickly as possible!" She grabbed the sword of one bodyguard and turned, slicing one of the red paintings in half.

A blast of wind picked up and a circle formed over our heads in the neat shape of a star missing a point. The scarf blew away from her neck and the mark of devils who lived in the Abyss glowed brightly on her chest. I unsheathed my sword, putting it through the painting nearest us. Frisk and Nacarat ran for two more paintings as the ground beneath us began to roll. Zapia destroyed the last of the three paintings in the circle as MK stomped the sixth one on the ground. 

Lilmur only laughed. "It is too late! The devils come! Come my masters! Come and feast on the flesh of these mortals!" A red barrier circled the lawn, trapping anyone who hadn't run for it inside. 

My mother lifted her hand and a wizards staff appeared in it. She struck the ground and a wide area of calm and peace surrounded her, a circle of protection against evil. "Everyone to me!"

As the crowd ran for mom, the rest of us ran for Lilmur. Nacarat cracked the woman over the head with a summoners staff, sending Lilmur to the ground, unconscious in a heap. 

Asriel looked around before pulling out his locket and opening it. More water than the locket could possibly ever hold poured forth on the ground before a shapely woman of blue ice rose from it. Lumi, his ice spirit familiar, awaited his order. "We need to break this spell. Help me locate the crux keeping the portal open."

Zapia held onto her green striped scarf tightly. "Can you close it?" 

"If I can find the thing keeping it open, yes. Once I find it, I'll need you to keep any devils that come out of the portal from stopping me."

I looked up to see a pride of hellcats getting ready to leap down. Their long claws and vicious fangs only made more frightening by their long lengths and huge bodies. "Find it fast! There's only a few of us and I'm sure that something is right behind the hellcats."

We lined up to give Asriel the necessary cover. 

Nacarat pointed. "Devils are immune to fire and poison as well as resistant to cold and acid."

"Frisk! Get us going with some holy rolling!" MK called.

Frisk raised her hands and a protection from evil fell over us just as the hellcats leapt through the portal. Zapia caught one on her scarf, confusing it enough to make it pause before skewering it on her sword. Astelle moved like a dancer through the cats as they landed, cleaving off heads with each step. Anything that got past her, MK and I felled. I glanced over at mom for a moment and found the circle of protection holding while she concentrated. The guardsmen with her using the edge of the circle as a shield to fight the hellcats.

"I found it!" Asriel called. 

I ran for my brother and readied to guard him as insectoid Gelugon flew out of the portal on their paper thing wings. The buzz of so many in such an enclosed space was distracting at best and maddening at worst. Frisk waded into them with her mace, heading for Zapia who appeared to be wounded. Nacarat pulled back from the swarm and spun her summoner's staff around herself as she sang. She let go of the staff and it became a red-orange crescent on which she was lifted high. Underneath her a sigil appeared in the air and a mass of dire bats flew out of it as if it were a portal, attacking and eating the Gelugon.

Frisk got to Zapia, a glow surrounding my beloved's hands as she placed them on our friend. The elf ceased to limp and resumed her attack, coming up next to MK and giving him support. Asriel and his familiar lifted a jar of red paint from the ground and shattered it, freeing the tortured souls inside. Distracted by the sight, I turned too slowly to defend against the hellcat pouncing on me. Only to watch it be struck by lightning and fall to the ground smoldering. I looked over and saw my mother, hands falling from the hastily cast spell to save me.

The portal began to close but not before a squad of horned devils descended on leathery wings, three of them surrounding Frisk.

Asriel turned grabbing me to run for her. "We have to save Frisk!"

I dispatched the horned devil that flew for us. "Are we talking about the same Frisk? Because the only thing she might need saving from is the potential lawsuits the devils might serve her for beating the snot out of them."

Frisk appeared next to Asriel, smashing the devil next to him in the face, the three that's previously surrounded her dead on the ground. "Hello!"

"See? She's fine." I sliced through the devil on my left.

Between Astelle, Zapia, and I, we managed to clean up the remaining horned devils while the dire bats snacked on the devilish insects. I looked around, my sword resting on my shoulder. The people who hadn't managed to escape were safe with mom and the paintings, by some miracle, were outside of the ring of destruction rather than inside of it. If the watch could get the mess cleaned up well enough, the exhibition could continue. Though I doubted it would be as exciting as the stories circulated about the morning's events.

Mom walked over to us and somehow managed to hug Asriel, Astelle, and I all at once. "You rascals! I should have known something was up by the looks you two gave Chara this morning."

Astelle pushed at her gently. "Since when did you know magic?"

"Why are you so surprised that I am an adept wizard?" My queenly mother smiled slyly. "Oh, I suppose I've never told you all how Sans and I met." She leaned in a bit so that her face was fully in ours. "I was once an adventurer and part of the same party Sans, Papyrus, and Undyne were a part of. I am no stranger to the fray, which is why I frown so heavily on my own children being a part of it." She straightened and smoothed out her dress with a sigh. "Though I suppose it simply runs in the family." 

Mom motioned for us to move aside and we retreated behind the circle of paintings. She lifted her wizard's staff high, reciting a serious incantation. The staff began to glow and she waved it over the area. The bodies of the dead devil kind disappeared and lawn returned to its normal, pristine condition. She smiled in satisfaction as the crowd erupted in applause and shrill whistles.

I put an arm around Frisk. "How about some lunch?"

She reached up and touched my nose with the tip of her finger. A warm sensation came over me with the simple spell meant to clean the recipient up. "Certainly!" 

We snuck away and found plenty of places empty of customers who'd rushed to see the commotion on the university lawn. 

Frisk took my hand as we sat down at a table for two in some random cafe. "When did you fall in love with me?"

I blinked and thought about it for a moment. "Do you mean romantically? Or just when I fell in love with you?"

"There's a difference?"

I nodded. "When I met you, you were a month old at best. Mom was thrilled to see you, her best friend's newborn daughter. And she was determined that all of us royal children would hold the baby for good luck. It was something I particularly despised. Babies hated me and wailed as soon as they were in my arms.

"But you didn't. You just looked up at me with your big blue eyes and held my finger, before yawning and falling asleep." I smiled a little. "That's when I fell in love with you. When you took your first steps nine months later at my seventh birthday party, it was the best gift I'd received that day. Though I'm pretty sure you just wanted the toy I was holding."

Frisk giggled.

I sighed. "Of all the people over the years who'd asked me to teach them to knit, you were the only one I'd let crawl into my lap to learn."

"All right then." Frisk leaned forward, face framed by her hands as she rested her elbows on the table. "Romantically?"

I shrugged. "I don't know when that happened."

"Oh come on!"

"Let me explain!" I shook my head at her pursed lips. "On my twenty first birthday, Mom, Dad, and I were sitting in the garden, enjoying a bottle of wine together when mom said I should start considering marriage. And without thinking about it, I blurted out that you weren't old enough for us to get married yet."

A big smile graced her lips and I basked in it for a moment.

"So, I'd determined that, if you were going to be my wife, I better start working on being the man you wanted for a husband." I smirked at her. "That said, you'd probably decided to make a husband of me long before that."

I waited for her to answer in the affirmative and got nothing but a sneaky smile.

**Author's Note:**

> Author's note:  
> Okay, for those of you who didn't get the hint from the long striped scarf, Zapia is an Undertale character and one you find in Snowdin. Zapia Saguaren literally translates as 'Scarf Mouse' from Basque. And who does the scarf mouse stand next to in Snowdin? The Nacarat Jester. That's right! Both of the girls are from Undertale!
> 
> If you like what you read, let me know with a comment or kudos!


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